Saturday, February 14, 2015

You Say Injera, I say Enjera.

Eye-filled homemade pure teff injera!

If you have Teff Love, I've been tweaking the Ye'tef Injera recipe just a little. And, I've been cooking it on a giant 16" wide griddle I picked up online. Scoring gluten-free injera isn't too hard in Portland, but I can't get any on Sundays. Plus, I like the challenge of making 'em myself. The sour flavor comes through so nicely when you ferment the batter yourself, which tastes so-very-good with spicy wot.

I'm also pretty convinced, the GF injera I've been buying locally is not pure teff, so I'll be playing around with combos I haven't tried before, like adding buckwheat.

Ivory teff flour still produces brown injera, just a bit lighter in color--closer to what you might expect to see in Ethiopian restaurants.

I've also noticed that Bob's Red Mill is now packaging different varieties of teff flour under one label. So no worries if you notice your injera changing colors. I've not noticed a real difference in flavor between the light and dark varieties. Also, just so ya know, unlike quinoa, it's illegal to export large amounts of teff from Ethiopia, so any teff flour you buy domestically is also domestically grown.

Wanna see some injera in action? Here's a short video Grant Butler, the food writer of The Oregonian, put together on a recent trip to my kitchen! Using the griddle takes a little practice, but it's really not hard to do. I've noticed the injera comes out much better on this griddle, than when I make small ones on my stove's pancake griddle.

Not perfectly round, but perfectly deelish.

Remember how I said I've been tweaking my recipe? The injera in these photos were made by using an additional 1/2 cup of water on the first day (4 1/2 cups total), when the teff, water, fenugreek and starter are combined. Then on the following day 2, I cooked 3/4 cup of the batter instead of the 1/2 cup stated in the recipe.

The grill pictured on the box is not the one with the Silverstone surface.
Be sure to verify you're getting the correct model!

Here's the grill I've been gabbin' about! The Bethany Housewares Heritage Lefse Grill with the Silverstone/Teflon coating. You'll also need a wide lid. I use the one from my giant canning pot, but if you don't have one 14-16" wide be sure to add one to your order.

The only places I know to get these grills are on Amazon or Target.com. If you have a great kitchen store in your city, they might be able to order one for you. Before you order through either of these links, be sure to verify you're getting the one with the Silverstone surface, the first one I ordered came with the brushed aluminum top accidentally!

Here's the link on Amazon (this is an affiliate link--I'll make a small commission if you purchase through this link).

Cool video, that grill is epic! Interesting about teff exporting. I love fenugreek but I find it makes my skin smell... kind of like maple syrup? I guess that's a good thing but it's weird none the less!

These are affiliate links to my cookbook, and to the griddle I use for making really amazing, large, homemade teff injera! If you're planning to order via Amazon, please consider purchasing through my blog (I'll earn a small commission on each sale).